Courage? The State Department?

If the U.S. government is truly serious about honoring those who want reform in the Muslim world, why is it not honoring those people who are sticking their necks out in stating their love for America and peace for Israel?

America has been pursuing a policy ever since 9/11 to honor what it perceives as moderate Muslims.

This policy, at present failed, would make sense if such moderate Muslims were pro-Western freedoms, pro-peace with Israel, anti-Sharia, or would stand up to Islamic jihad. Regrettably, Muslims and former Muslims who do stand up to Islamism have been ignored; those embraced by the West are almost always anti-American and anti-Jew, and even make excuses for jihad and terrorism.

The most recent instance is Samira Ibrahim, an Egyptian national, nominated -- and then withdrawn -- by the U.S. State Department for its prestigious "International Women of Courage Award." In its pursuit to appease Muslims, regardless of ideology, the US ignored Ibrahim's extreme hatred of the U.S. and Israel, and her celebration of 9/11 and terrorism. Yes, Ibrahim was courageous for filing a lawsuit against the Egyptian military for undergoing a virginity test, but that so called courage should be viewed in the right context.

After the revolution, Egypt was extremely embarrassed by an international uproar over the virginity test of about 21 young women who were demonstrating in Tahrir Square. That came in the wake of the brutal sexual assault there of the CBS reporter Lara Logan. Egyptian government officials, many of whom are consumed with appearing democratic and civilized before the West, initially denied the story but then admitted it. That embarrassment was what encouraged some female victims to file a lawsuit, which the government allowed them to win in order to save face and prove to the West it had achieved a democracy after the revolution. Ms. Ibrahim was somewhat courageous for winning a lawsuit against the Egyptian military; however, that lawsuit should never have risen to the level of becoming an icon to be honored by the U.S .State Department. Officials in the State Department, thinking no one was looking into her background, perhaps including them, ignored who Ms. Ibrahim really was.

Ms. Ibrahim's views are no breakthroughs of courage against the real problems of the Muslim world: her head covering remains a symbol of her defense of Sharia. She has never demonstrated against the forced virginity checks that occur daily in Egypt at almost all weddings to make sure the bride is a virgin. As a child in Egypt, I attended weddings where the bride's virginity blood was on display on a white handkerchief while guns were shot to celebrate the blessed event proving the family's pride in their daughter's virginity. Neither did Ibrahim lead a movement in Egypt against female genital mutilation or the Egyptian marriage contract, which asks the bride to sign a paper before the marriage stating she is a virgin.

There is also no feminist movement in Egypt lead by Ibrahim, against the barbaric honor killings of girls found not to be virgins; that is perhaps because all are either dead or have undergone reconstructive virginity surgery, a popular procedure for girls who must save their necks.

While many Muslims today are starting to speak against the brutality of Sharia laws which cause "virginity tests" in the first place, Ibrahim never speaks ill of Sharia, or condemns its laws against women and non-Muslims. Ibrahim is, however, a very vocal anti-American, who celebrated the anniversary of 9/11 as well as violence and terror against Israelis. What courage is it if the majority of Egyptians shares her feelings? What courage did our State Department think it was celebrating?

After failing to receive the Award, Ibrahim blamed the Zionist lobby in America; her "logic" is popular in Egypt, where people blame all ills on Jews. It is a sad fact that Ibrahim's views actually do represent the majority of the so-called moderate Muslims everywhere. Such moderate Muslims, who are demonstrating today against the Mursi government, are no less anti-American than the radicals. As a matter of fact many of them wish to resume hostilities against Israel and believe that Mursi caved to the American pressure; they are now accusing him of being a puppet of the U.S. just like his predecessor. The sad truth is that most so-called "moderate" Muslims could be as anti-American and anti-Semitic as Al Qaeda. That is why the US should be vastly more cautious and realistic in taking sides at all in the Middle East.

Before we rush into giving awards of courage, the U.S. should develop its own courage and give its awards to those Egyptian women who fled the oppression of Sharia and are living in the West under a death warrant because they have openly spoken against terrorism, jihad, Al-Qaeda, and discrimination against Jews and Christians under Islam.

It is also hypocritical for the U.S. to honor those who are demonstrating against the Mursi government; the U.S. was instrumental in bringing the Muslim Brotherhood to power. In doing that, the U.S. is simply participating in a game with the Egyptian government to make it look good.

If the U.S. government is truly serious about honoring those who want reform in the Muslim world, why is it not honoring those people who are sticking their necks out in stating their love for America and peace with Israel? Why is it not honoring someone like Wafa Sultan, Ayaan Hirsi Ali -- or Dr. Zuhdi Jasser or Tawfiq Hamid, who still call themselves Muslims and are trying to reform Islam?

I do not think the US State Department will nominate any of these truly courageous in the near future: that would require courage.

Nonie Darwish Author "The Devil We Don't Know" and President of Former Muslims United.

Comment on this item

Name:

Email Address:

Comments:

Email me if someone replies to my comment

Note: Gatestone Institute greatly appreciates your comments. The editors reserve the right, however, not to publish comments containing: incitement to violence, profanity, or any broad-brush slurring of any race, ethnic group or religion. Gatestone also reserves the right to edit comments for length, clarity and grammar. All thoughtful suggestions and analyses will be gratefully considered. Commenters' email addresses will not be displayed publicly. Gatestone regrets that, because of the increasingly great volume of traffic, we are not able to publish them all.

5 Reader Comments

Bart Benschop • Mar 14, 2013 at 02:24

Dear Nonie Darwish,

Good on you and bless you for your courage.

Kind regards,

Bart Benschop

Reply->

Phil Slepian • Mar 13, 2013 at 09:56

State would never award Muslims who are anti-Sharia, pro-Western, or pro-Israel. In the minds of the leftists that control State, that would make no sense. Since they are attempting to prove to the Muslim Uma that the U.S. government supports Sharia law, is dialing back its support for Israel, and is apologetic for the "sins" of America's past; only Muslims who are Sharia-observant, anti-Western, and anti-Israel can receive these awards. Ibrahim's award was only cancelled because it became too blatently embarrassing, even for State. Her views are completely in-synch with State's views, but having them publicized created a PR nightmare. In State's view, to recognize anti-Sharia or pro-Western Muslims would defeat the very purpose behind the awards, which is to show contrition and even submission to Muslims.

Reply->

Frumious Falafel Phil Slepian • Mar 15, 2013 at 10:50

What a great article. Hear hear! The State Department is a miserable enough entity without needing to sully themselves further by honoring blatant anti-Semites.

The reason, in my opinion, that the State Department Lefties-in-suits don't seek out pro-American/pro-peace-with-Israel Muslims is because "those people" are not "native enough." To be truly native, to be truly "indigenous," the person must either hate America or at minimum be derisive of the West. If a candidate loves America, then the reaction is "Oooooh, he's like, one of us!" Our leftist friends won't applaud our giving an award to someone who is in line with Yankee capitalist Zionist racist views!

How self-destructive much of our extremely self-critical culture has become.

Reply->

Jagdish N. Singh • Mar 13, 2013 at 08:36

One hopes the citizens of the United States will take to self-introspection and be truly vigilant at the time of electing their leaders. Their gullibility or passivity in the matter has led to such political leadership as has had little vision and strategy to defend and strengthen democracy at home and abroad. The American political command is yet to learn any lesson from the past and invest in truly liberal progressive forces the world over.

Reply->

Joseph Maloney • Mar 13, 2013 at 05:27

The much heralded "Arab Spring" has proven to be anything but democratic. Libya is in a continual state of chaos since NATO's takedown of Gaddafi. Tunisia has also been unstable. Egypt is ruled by the Muslim Brotherhood. Hezbollah 'black shirts' are in control of the upcoming elections in Lebanon. George W. Bush's 'Road to peace' giveaway of Gaza to the Palestinians, who elected Hamas as their government leaders, has utilized the Gaza as a launching base for thousands of mortars and rockets into Israel. Al-Qaeda is gaining strength in Iraq, as the sectarian war in Syria grins on. The Obama administration has lost four lives in an attack on the Libyan embassy on September 12, 2012, and the next day in the White House garden blamed a 13-minute laughable film 'The Innocence of Muslims' for the attack, and had it shown on Pakistani airwave. President Obama said, "Al-Qaeda's decimated," but we are supporting and training al-Qaeda rebels in Syria. Americans are also supporting Morsi in Egypt, who will use the funds to suppress the 'black block' anonymous rebelion that is taking place there. I can never forget a quote by political polster Pat Caddell, "The State Department has been enemies of Israel for forty years." Is the State Department so naive to believe that Islam can live outside its Koran? Sharia law is Muslim democracy. The State Department has aided and abetted the Muslim's Khilafah.